Loveless and Loneliness
by XHeartsGrowX
Summary: Sakura as a child came to Suna. There, she befriends Gaara, the so-called monster of the village. When her family decides to leave, she promises him of her return. What happens when she fails to fulfill this promise? More so, when they meet each other once again. -GaaSaku-
1. The meeting

Hey people! Just finished editing this chapter and I have to say, I really sucked with the descriptions of this chapter so I'm glad I fixed it. There are a lot of changes but not to the plot! Well, Start with the story!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto!

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"Come on, Sakura! We have to get ready! We're going on a trip to Suna, remember?" a woman with dark, pink hair called out to her daughter. "Yes,mother.." Sakura replied anxiously. Unlike her mother, she had light, pink hair and apple green eyes that matched her pale face. She also has cute chubby cheeks that makes you wanna pinch it.

"What's wrong, sweetie?" her mother asked. "W-well… What if the people there are mean?" she asked looking at her mother with fear written all over her face. "You'll be fine, sweetie.. I'll help you make friends, okay?" Akane stated trying to make her daughter feel better and to her surprise, the pinkette beamed. "Okay! Thank you, mother!" she chirped.

Relief filled Akane's eyes as she saw the girl's smile again. "Now.. will you please help me pack our things?" she asked sweetly bending down to her daughter. "Of course!" she answered as she started gathering her things.

"Hurry, mother! We'll be late! Father's waiting!"she yelled cheerfully. "Okay, okay.. Sakura, Slow down!" her mother pleaded. "Hmmph! Fine!" she said crossing her arms. Akane giggled at her daughter's behavior and quickly folded their clothes. After putting them in the bags, she smiled and started walking towards the gates.

"Let's go, Sakura!" she smiled gently at her daughter. "Yes! Mother! Let's go see father at Suna!"

* * *

5-year-old Sakura was excited to go to Suna. She wanted to make friends and her mother was going to help her. She wanted to see what Suna looked like and the platforms they would pass by. Sadly though, her still immature eyes wanted her to sleep and so she did.

"Wake up, Sakura. We're here." Sakura awoke due to her mother's voice. She quickly sat up from her mother's lap and looked through the window. She was surprised to see that there was sand everywhere. Well, it is called the Sand Village. _Awww… These are all sands!_ She thought miserly. She hated sand. It always made her eyes teary.

They soon arrived at their home and Sakura was glad to see that their home looked beautiful. A thought still lingering in her mind as she saw her mother. "Mom! Let's go make friends now!" she said bouncing up and down. "I'm sorry,sweetie but it seems that I can't help you. We still have a lot of work to do. You can go by yourself right?" Akane replied, brushing off dirt from her dress and kissed Sakura on her cheeks. She then waved her off. "Good luck, Sakura!" she yelled.

Sakura walked along the roads by herself reflecting on her thoughts. _My mother never understands.._ she thought to herself. _No! my mother is just busy! I can't let these thoughts get me down!_ She thought as she slapped her very chubby cheeks.

When she got to the park, she saw the kids playing and laughing. Excitement filled her small body and she forgot about her anxiety. She walked towards the children putting on her smile. "Can I play with you guys?" she asked nervously. Her stomach obviously filled with butterflies. She was, however met with silence until she noticed they were staring… at her forehead.

"Haha! Look at her forehead guys! It's so huge!" a boy with messy brown hair perked. Sakura's little world then came crashing down. "Yeah! It looks big!" another one spoke up. "I don't want to be friends with a weirdo!" a girl teased putting out her tongue and making a disgusted face. The other children all agreed and left the place moving on to the swings and slides.

Sakura let out all her tears. She couldn't hold it in anymore. Her tears wouldn't stop falling as her pink hair cascaded down on her face to hide her tears. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a young boy playing at the sandbox. _Why isn't he playing with the rest?_ She thought as she slowly calmed down.

The red-head looked at the girl with curious jade eyes. Sakura shocked by the sudden interest stepped closer to the sandbox. "You're not laughing. C-can I play w-with you?" she asked as her crystal tears stopped falling.

The boy seemed stunned. _Is she talking to me?_ he thought. Sakura however, misunderstood the silence and cried again. "Y-you think I'm weird too!" she yelled between sobs. "S-sorry! I just wondered why you were talking to me.." the boy answered waving his small hands as if to show he wasn't laughing.

"Why wouldn't I?" she questioned. "W-well.." the boy hesitated on answering._ What if she becomes afraid too? _he pondered on the possibilities and decided to continue. "They said I'm a monster." He finally continued lowering his head down readying himself for the screams. "But you're not a monster! Monsters are scary!" the boy lifted his head only to see the girl, smiling at him._ No one's ever smiled at me before_ he thought enchantingly. "My name's Sakura by the way!" she explained. "Gaara." He stated bluntly. "Okay then! Gaara-kun!" she mused emphasizing the –kun. "What? Sakura-chan?" he asked. "You're eyes are pretty!" she commented, nodding her head in approval. Gaara blushed and quickly looked away. "T-thanks." He stuttered.

"Hmmm.. It's almost sunset!" she gasped turning to see a confused Gaara. "I have to get home!" she told Gaara. "Sorry, Gaara! Let's play all day tomorrow, kay?"she pleaded putting her hands together and winking the other one. _Cute._ He thought as he blushed again.

"O-okay! See you tomorrow, then?" he asked, a desperate look on his face. She frowned "What's with that look? I prefer to see you smiling you know!" she grinned. "Sorry." He muttered. Sakura started giggling and Gaara gave her another confused look. "You apologize a lot!" she said before bursting into giggles again.

Gaara smiled at his new friend. "Don't you need to go home?" he smirked. "You're right!" her face looking horrified. Gaara inwardly chuckled at her face.

"Bye then!" she shouted before running off. Gaara watched her back until it was no longer there. He turned back and headed home smiling to himself and humming cheerfully.

_This is what a friend feels like!_ Sakura thought feeling all tingly and fluttery inside.

_I finally have a friend. She didn't laugh at me!_ Gaara thought reminiscing on the previous meeting still smiling.

_It feels good._ They both thought as they looked at the moon, excited to meet the other tomorrow.

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Done! two chapters done in one day! I'm so happy! And proud of myself! Don't I deserve a cookie?

I know how to make line breaks now! Yay! LOL!

LOL! Thank you for reading and please review!


	2. Secrets and a Hidden power

Hello to everyone who decided to continue reading this story! LOLZ! I finished editing quickly!

Thanks to MiyatheEarthninja who reviewed! I'm thankful_ and_ glad you clicked and read this! Thanks for those who followed and put these on their favorites! Glad you guys wanna keep reading this!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

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Sakura awoke to a dreamless sleep. Her eyes slowly fluttering open as she glanced around her environment looking at reality. She stood up quickly and walked drowsily to the mirror. Looking at her reflection, she opened a drawer to reveal a pink brush. Taking it, she gently combed through her short locks and smiled at her hair. _Perfect._ She thought as she skipped happily down the stairs to the dining room.

Meanwhile, a certain jade eyed boy was sitting on a chair, flailing his arms above like he was doing an exercise. "Gaara, what are you going to do today?" a man with chestnut colored hair that reached his neck asked. "I'm going to meet Sakura- chan at the park!" he yelled excitedly standing up from his chair and jumping.

This seemed to piqué the man's interest as he looked shocked from Gaara's statement. "Sakura? you mean from the Haruno clan?" he asked again. "Hmm… I'm not sure but she has pink hair!" he said while taking a bite of his pancake.

"You know Gaara… that girl is said to be special. They say she has a kekkei genkai that only she has from the Haruno clan." He said, a mischievous smirk plastered on his face. "Can you ask her what it is?" he asked with a pleading look. The look he gave was… scary but Gaara still a child didn't notice. "Sure!" he nodded in agreement. Then taking a huge gulp from his water ran off without saying a goodbye.

* * *

Sakura was sitting on the bench again waiting for Gaara to come. She soon spotted a flash of scarlet red from afar and squinted her eyes to see better. "Gaara kun!" she squeaked as she hurriedly stood up and ran towards the red-head.

"Hey, Sakura chan!" he greeted. "Hi, Gaara kun!" she answered back. Looking around, she showed a pondering look for there were no other people in the park. As if hearing what she thought, the red-head answered for him. "It's still early in the morning. The kids usually come at noon. We've got a lot of time to play!"he chirped. "Right! Sakura chan, will you be staying here?" he asked with a look that said 'I hope you are.' The pinkette smiled inwardly but then felt a sinking feeling when she remembered something. "Sorry, Gaara kun! But we're only here for vacation so me and my parents will leave soon." She gave him an apologetic look and bowed down her head incoherently.

"O-oh.." he nodded slowly trying to hide his frustrated voice. _Sakura chan will not stay.. I'll be left alone again._ He thought sadly, feeling lonely already. Noticing the sudden change of atmosphere, Sakura quickly pondered thoughts to change the subject but miserably thought of nothing.

"Don't worry, Gaara kun! I'll always visit you! My mom will probably allow it!" she beamed trying to free the heavy atmosphere. "R-really?" he asked slowly looking at her eyes. "Yup!" she answered playfully. "Let's play then!" Sakura's anticipated voice rang through Gaara's mind. "Okay!" he nodded quickly.

The two kids walked over to the swings. Sakura sat down while Gaara pushed her. "Higher, Higher!" she screamed while laughing. Gaara laughed and obeyed the girl, making the swing go higher. They were both immersed in their own worlds with just the two of them. It was enough for them. They were so happy.

Moving on from the swings, they went to the slides, screaming "Yipee's and Yay's when they felt like it. "I'm exhausted, Gaara kun! Can we take a rest?" she asked looking at him. "Sure!" he quickly replied taking Sakura's hand and pulling her towards the bench.

The bench was always comfortable. Always warm. Sakura had often wondered why but never came to a finality.

A sudden thought quickly formed through Gaara's thought as he looked at Sakura in all seriousness which Sakura had to admit did not suit him. "Do you have a kekkei genkai, Sakura-chan?" he asked bluntly, eyeing Sakura for any reactions. She flinched but it was barely noticeable. He knew she hesitated on replying. "Y-yes.." she finally answered. "Really? What?" his eyes suddenly filled with interest and curiosity. She hesitated on answering back."My parents said I'm not allowed to tell anyone. I'm sorry. I can't tell you. She finally looked at him and examined if he was mad and felt relieved when she saw none.

"Okay! I understand,Sakura-chan!" He smiled and realized yet another thing. "It's getting kinda late. Won't you need to go home?" He asked her showing a worried look. "You're right! I gotta go! See you tomorrow then." She spoke as she looked at the sky that has already turned dark.

She soon arrived home seeking her mother who she quickly spotted outside their house looking around worriedly. As if on cue, she spotted her and quickly motioned for her to come home. She flashed a pretty, apologetic smile as she ran towards her mother. "I'm home!" she cheerfully yelled.

"Sakura! You came home really late today! I was starting to get worried." Akane reached for Sakura's hand and slowly pulled her back inside. "I'm sorry, mother. I lost track of the time." she apologized as she sat down on her seat. "That's okay. The food will be ready soon so stay there, kay?" she walked off towards the door leading to the kitchen.

As her mother opened the door to the kitchen, a fresh scent of curry with rice spreaded through the room. She smiled as she breathed in the peculiar scent. Obviously excited, to eat dinner with her mother and father.

* * *

"I'm home,Yashamaru!" Gaara announced as he headed to the dining room, waiting for Yashamaru's reply. "Welcome home, Gaara!" came a voice from the kitchen. His voice seemed to have a hint of malice in it.

Putting dinner on the table, Yashamaru smiled at Gaara who smiled back. "Did you ask,Sakura- chan yet?" he questioned the red-head. Gaara only nodded as he took a spoonful of his soup. "Yeah! But she didn't tell me what it was. She said it was a secret." He sighed in disappointment. He failed to carry out Yashamaru's task for him. But what could he do? He couldn't force Sakura to say it.

"It's fine. I understand." He inwardly smirked at his newly found information. _At least now, we know that Haruno Sakura really does have a kekkei genkai. I'll have to report this to the Kazekage later._ He thought mischievously smiling at the thought.

_Hmmm.. while I'm at it, maybe I should use Gaara. He is her friend after all. He's bound to know soon. _He thought again grinning while making sure his eyes stayed at Gaara who was eating his dinner peacefully.

_Soon…_

* * *

Done! This took me really long to finish. Probably, a few hours! Maybe 4? I don't remember! Hehe!

Reviews make me happy!


	3. Hellos and Goodbyes

Hello, dear readers! I have proofread this chapter now too! I do hope you like it.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

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Sakura was just getting ready to go to the park to meet her friend Gaara. She tensed when she heard someone call her. Smiling, she went down the stairs to greet and ask her mother what was going on.

"Sakura… how have you been doing?" her mother, Akane asked. The pinkette smiled, content her mother cared for her. "I'm doing great, mother!" she answered triumphantly. "Anything else?" Akane shook her head silently telling her to go back to whatever she was doing.

Sakura climbed back upstairs in response. "Come down when you're done,kay?" Sakura sighed mentally and fixed herself. She looked at the mirror checking for any signs of drool on her face. Seeing none, she smiled and came back down.

She was in a very good mood today. Well, she has always been in a fantastic mood since she met Gaara. The two had been friends for 4 days already and Sakura was well aware of their closer bond.

"Sakura! Are you listening?" she snapped out of her thoughts and grinned playfully. "S-sorry." She muttered. "That's okay." Akane smiled at her daughter and spoke again.

"You and your friend are very close now, huh?" she started asking. "Yup! Me and Gaara kun play all the time! We're bestfriends!" she beamed. "I see… perhaps, you can tell me more about your friend, Gaara?" Akane asked again eyeing her daughter for her reactions.

The girl merely nodded. " Don't know much but.. Gaara kun was alone when I met him! He said the people would always run away from him. I don't run away though!" she announced proudly.

Akane didn't know how to react to her daughter's proud announcement. To be worried that Sakura's friend is feared or to be proud of her daughter's courage. She didn't know which to choose! She thought about it and decided to go with her first choice.

"There must be a reason for the children to be scared, right?" she quietly murmured to her daughter "Well… He did say they said he was a monster, but he's not! He's not scary at all! Gaara kun's very kind!" Akane gaped at the part where her daughter said 'monster' and suddenly, she was glad they'd leave soon.

"Are you sure?" she asked once again, still not convinced. "Yes! I don't think you should say he's a monster cuz' he IS not one!" she protested.

"Okay, fine!" There was no point in arguing, they'd leave soon anyway and this Gaara boy would become Sakura's past. "That's not the only reason why I called you here.." she became serious again.

Sakura was about to ask what it was about but her mother started before she could say anything. "Have you had any signs of… your kekkei genkai?" Akane began, her eyes filled with so much hope. Sakura tensed at the sudden question and shook her head. "N-no.." she stuttered.

Akane sighed in disappointment and stood up. "Well, just go to the park and play." Sakura's mood darkened. She had made her mother sad. Surely, her mother was not proud of her.

"Bye, mother.." she spoke with clear sadness. _At least I get to see Gaara kun.._ she thought as she walked out.

"Sakura!" her mother called. She turned and gave her mother a questioning look. "We're leaving Suna tomorrow. Father has finished his job here." She started already seeing Sakura flinch. "I hope you're not too attached to that boy. You should also probably say your goodbyes okay?" Akane suggested nicely but her voice also had a demanding tone.

"I can't do that! Gaara will be very lonely!" she protested. "Let me stay here! I won't be a bad girl!" she pleaded.

"I'm sorry, Sakura but you know we can't stay here. You're well aware of the risks we had already taken just by being here!" Akane's voice was so strict and so sure. "We can't let anyone from our village except the Hokage know of your kekkei genkai so if anyone from this village knows of this, bad things will happen!"

Sakura was still not convinced and was about to protest again when her mother cut her off. "Don't you know of the possibilities of war? It may happen!" she was yelling now.

Sakura flinched at her mother's sudden outburst and nodded repeatedly. Hesitantly, she walked towards her mother and bowed her head. "I'm sorry, mother. I was only thinking of myself." She apologized thoughtfully.

Akane shook her head and sighed. "This is exactly why I wanted a son." Sakura gasped and refrained from crying. She ran up to her room and slammed the door. Leaning on the door for support, she hugged her body and bowed her head, wanting to become smaller. Wanting to just disappear.

In her room, she let the tears fall freely. She raised her head to look at the clock.

_9:00 am_ she thought. _I'm late._ She rubbed her eyes and went to the bathroom to wash her face. She looked at the mirror to check for dried tears and puffy eyes. She was very relieved when she saw not much.

She then hurried off to the park, not wanting to make Gaara to wait. While going there, she thought about her conversation with her mother. She sighed when she noticed she was already at the park.

* * *

Gaara was sitting on a bench when he spotted a splotch of pink. He stood up immediately and waved his hands in Sakura's direction. "Over here, Sakura chan!" he yelled.

Sakura noticed him and looked at his direction. She smiled then sprinted towards Gaara. "Hi, Gaara kun!" she greeted him properly. Gaara frowned when he noticed the pinkette's unusual behavior. "Something wrong?" he asked thoughtfully.

"W-well.. remember when I said I'd be leaving soon?" she answered his question with another question of her own. "Yes, why?" he questioned. With his sharp eyes, he noticed her squirm uncomfortably. She didn't answer his question.

Gaara went into deep thought for a few moments. Widening his eyes when he thought of the most possible answer. "A-are you leaving?" she smiled sadly and nodded. "I'm sorry, Gaara kun but my father's job here is done so.. there's not really a reason for me to stay." She informed.

"O-oh… I see.." he stuttered.

Being the smart girl she is, Sakura already felt the sadness in her friend's voice. Quickly, she wrecked her brain for anything to comfort her first friend.

"Don't worry, Gaara kun! I'll visit you! We'll always be together no matter what! Never ever think you're alone, Gaara kun or I'll get mad at you!" she reassured the boy. Although, deep down, she was not reassured. After all, her mother might not allow her to visit.

Judging by her conversation with Akane earlier, they were not planning on coming back. Sakura was just hoping her gut-feeling was wrong.

"Okay, Sakura chan!" Gaara stated trying to hold back his sobs. Soon enough, he could not hold it in anyore and he started to cry… loudly.

"Don't cry, Gaara kun!" she started, her tears starting to reappear. "O-or I'll cry too!" she threatened rather poorly as she was already crying.

"Waaahhh! You can't leave, Sakura chan! I'll be alone again!" he cried out sobbing in between. "I already told you, right? You'll never be alone since my presence will always be with you!" she tried to comfort the red-head again. She failed miserably as she was not comforted either.

"I-I'll visit every month!" she proudly stated. Gaara stopped crying for a moment. "Really?" he asked making sure. "I promise!" she yelled.

They were silent for a moment until they both cried again.

There they were, crying their hearts out. In that very park, near the always so comfy and warm bench.

Not long, their guardians came to take them home.

"Bye,Sakura chan!" he sobbed.

"Goodbye,Gaara kun." She answered back.

They stared at each other.

Sakura took off the ribbon her mother had given her for her birthday and neared Gaara. "Here." She said handing him her red ribbon. "This way you'll remember that we _are_ friends. Whenever you're lonely, you can look at this and think of all our precious memories. That way, you'll know." She smiled reassuringly at the red head.

"You'll _know_ you're not alone." She added.

Gaara widened his eyes and tried his best to smile. And so he did. "Thank you, Sakura chan." He spoke with gratefulness. He then took off his ring. It was black with curvy lines that fitted perfectly with each other. Simple yet beautiful. "It's thanks for the ribbon."

She smiled as she accepted the ring and squeezed it in her palm. "Thank you…"

"Goodbye." Was Sakura's last statement as they separated ways.

It was of pure luck that no one was present in the park. Maybe heaven has given them some time alone with each other. Sakura silently thanked whoever was up there for the little moment that they had achieved because no one else was there.

The next day, Sakura's departure had occured. Gaara did not show. Sakura was torn between being disappointed because Gaara did not come to say goodbye for the last time or happy because no more tears would be shed.

She didn't choose.

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Done! This was an average long chapter! Yay! And please don't complain on the tears. It's normal,kay!

Yes. In this fic, Ino did not give her the ribbon. Her parents did! And Gaara has a ring. Which he has already given to Sakura.

Speak up!

Translation: Please review!


	4. Confusions and Realizations

Yo! I'm in a great mood today!

Why? Because I finished with this chapter of course! I'm pleased with myself!

Thank you for the reviews! I appreciate them!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto!

* * *

_Sakura chan should have left by now. I wish I'd seen her off but, I can't! I'll cry again! She might think of me as annoying. I don't want that! _

He sighed deeply and looked at the sky. "Sakura chan, When will you visit me?" he questioned, knowing she could not hear him.

Not long he heard a voice coming from the living room. "Gaara.. Is that you?"

"Yes." He answered quickly. "That's good. Are you okay?" Yashamaru asked worriedly. Gaara then pushed himself to the living room to see his guardian. "Yes!" he tried to answer cheerfully.

Yashamaru didn't seem to buy his enthusiasm and only nodded in response. Most likely, knowing already the cause of the boy's sorrow.

Gaara looked at Yashamaru because of his curiosity and wondered why Yashamaru didn't hate him. Now that he thought about it, Sakura and Yashamaru are the only ones who willingly talk to him.

Strange thing was he didn't seem to be bothered about it.

Yashamaru stood up from the couch and walked in Gaara's direction, now facing him. He bent down to see Gaara more clearly, smiled and straightened himself again.

Gaara gave Yashamaru a questioning look; he only got a smirk from the chestnut haired man.

"I'm going somewhere and I'm hoping for you to stay here until I come back." He finally replied.

"Sure!" Gaara replied. _Yashamaru never asks me to stay even if he's going somewhere. _He thought to himself._ Must be important!_ He added.

"Well, I'll see you later!" Yashamaru stated snapping Gaara from his thoughts.

"Okay! Be careful!" He said waving his hands like there's no tomorrow.

Somehow, he felt like something was wrong. He felt like something bad was going to happen. He forcibly pushed the feeling away telling himself it would be alright. Nothing bad will happen.

Or so he thought...

* * *

"Are you certain about your report Hawk?" An unknown man questioned. His voice was strict and had great force. It sent shivers down their spines.

"Yes, Haruno Sakura possesses a kekkei genkai. A special one surely.." A familiar voice replied. His voice had a hint of fear and respect. Probably, trying to act tough without making the man in front of him mad.

The man shook his head in disapproval. "Explain." He ordered.

"The Haruno's even took their child to Suna because of the rumors that spread in Konoha." He informed the man. "The rumor is.. that the girl has made a kekkei genkai. Meaning, a new kekkei genkai has been made. It is said that she is the only one out of all her clan to have had this power. That is what makes it so special." He added.

"No one except for the Haruno's and the Hokage know of this… power." He added once again.

"How are you sure the rumor is true?" the man demanded.

"A friend of hers has confirmed it. He said the girl answered with a 'yes.'"

The man's eyes widened as he was beginning to believe the report. "The girl however, refused to tell the boy what it is." He said disappointingly.

"And this boy is..?" Hawk smirked under the mask and replied clearly.

"Gaara no Sabaku."

The man shook his head in disapproval. His eyes looked… hurt.

"Gaara is my son! He being friends with that girl is unthinkable!" he yelled out of hate and pity for the said boy. Hawk flinched in shock but stayed firm in his position.

The man cleared his voice with a cough. "You know what to do, Hawk?"

The said man grinned viciously beneath his mask and nodded. "Hmm.. Are you perhaps saying to kill Gaara?" he asked rather.. cheerfully. Hawk was excited. He had been waiting for this order.

For so long has he wanted this boy dead. He wanted the boy's blood in his hands. Now, he could finally do it. He was already feeling the adrenaline rush through him.

"I refuse to have a son like that. He is already a disgrace to my name. I cannot let him continue to stain our clan's name! Dispose of him by all means. Use weapons if needed. I want him dead by midnight." The man commanded.

His voice void of any emotions. No one else knew however, that the man pitied his son.

_This is for the better…_

"I understand, Lord Kazekage!" Hawk then disappeared from the building.

The man was glad Hawk left; he wanted to be alone. After all, his only son would be killed because of his order.

* * *

"Yashamaru's still not home. I wonder if something happened." He thought out loud.

_Thud_

"Huh?! What was that?" he said, fear coming from his voice. "I-I'll go check it out. It may be Yashamaru." He announced, still afraid.

_THUD_

_THUD_

…_._

…

_It stopped? _He questioned himself.

…

_BANG!_

He jumped from surprise.

Gathering courage, he went to the origin of the noise.

The rooftop.

Slowly, he climbed the stairs, fearing something will come out from the shadows. He was visibly shivering in fear. Reaching the end of the stairs, he opened the door and carefully stepped out.

He was greeted by multiple kunais aiming for him.

"Aaaaahhh!" he shrieked, clearly shocked from the sudden attack.

Luckily, none of them hit him. Hesitantly, he stood up and saw in the shadows, an outline of a man.

The man even from the shadows seemed familiar.

The man lunged for him and revealed explosive kunais. He threw them at Gaara who could only scream in pain as the kunais struck his leg and explode.

He whimpered in pain and fear shook his body. He felt it. The fear.. it was taking over him!

It scared him. it was unimaginable. He felt bloodlust. He had no idea why. He was naïve and still a boy so of course he wouldn't understand bloodlust and yet.. It drove him to the point of standing up with his legs bleeding.

_How?_

He couldn't linger with this thought however as he felt something tug him from the inside. Pulling him down to the darkness.

_It hurts. Who.. Who is it? Please, make it stop! No!_

_**Blood!**_

_**Blood!**_

_**Kill him.. Kill him!**_

_**I want BLOOD!**_

_S-sakura chan! I'm scared! _He then reached for his pockets and felt a wave of relief flood through him as he grabbed hold of a ribbon. He pulled it out and held it closer to him. Almost, like embracing it.

Feeling comfort from the ribbon, his body stopped shivering.

His comfort however died as soon as the man came closer to him and snatched the ribbon from him.

"No!" he shouted. Tears running down his cheeks. "Give it back!" he yelled again, feeling anger crash through him.

Gaara, enraged heard something cackle within him.

**_Give in.. Give in.. I will take back what belongs to you. Hate. Hate! HATE!_**

Poor Gaara couldn't take anymore and his consciousness started ebbing away.. Gradually, he soon fell towards the darkness and and was left by whoever that thing was devour him.

The man laughed maniacally as he grabbed hold of the ribbon, toying with it. He then smiled as a plan formed itself in his head.

"You treasure this ribbon so much?" he asked the already fainted boy. "Well, Let's burn it." he performed hand seals and fire enveloped the red ribbon.

Gaara felt himself come back and groggily got up from his lying position. He then decided to lunge towards the man.

_No!_ he thought as he saw_ t_he ribbon turn into ashes.

Gaara has never felt so mad in his life.

Sand came out of nowhere and attacked the black op. The black op being one of the most powerful ranks of ninjas dodged the first hits but soon got hit on his right leg.

The black op cringed and fell off his balance landing towards the ground. Sand began to wrap itself around the ninja and sent him back towards the rooftop.

Gaara who was by now controlled by the monster reached to remove the black ops mask. The black op, too injured to move could not resist and his mask was removed with ease.

When the monster saw the true identity of the ninja, he smirked at his discovery.

He knew this man.. Rather, Gaara knew this man.

_Interesting.._ the monster thought as he let Gaara take control once again.

"What happened? T-the ribbon!" he panicked and looked to his left only to find ashes and a small piece of silk. It, however, fluttered and disappeared because of the wind.

He cried. "No!" he yelled. That was the only thing that could connect him with Sakura chan. He didn't want to lose it. He couldn't!

Pulling himself together and soothing his mind, he looked back to the scene in front of him. His eyes widened in shock and he quickly rushed towards the black op's side. The ribbon still lingering in his mind.

"Yashamaru! Are you okay?" he cried out looking at his current state.

Yashamru smirked. "It was you… You did this to me!" he accused.

"No..Yashamaru, I'm sorry." He sobbed.

He felt guilty. Yashamaru, his guardian, the person he could call his friend is dying because of him. Realization soon struck him fast and his eyes turned into bitter hate.

"You.. burned the ribbon." He stated. "You.. burned it."

Gaara frowned upon this and couldn't bring himself to feel pity for the man who raised him.

"You did a lot more than this." Yashamaru stated effectively snapping Gaara from his thoughts.

"What?"

"You…killed my sister!" he accused the red-head.

Gaara's frown expeditiously turned into a confused look. "I..didn't" If what Yashamaru said was true, he could no longer bring himself to be mad at Yashamaru. It was understandable that he did it for revenge. After all, Vengeance was what pushed Gaara to the edge. Vengeance made Gaara attack Yashamaru unintentionally because of what he did to the red ribbon.

"You were not aware of it but you killed her. She..was everything to me!" he said coughing up blood. "My sister did everything for you and yet you murdered her.." he added.

"I didn't kill her!" Gaara protested.

"You did.. You were not aware of it but you did!" he spat angrily.

Gaara felt the tears rush again and fell aggressively. Racing to reach the ground first.

"See what you did to me? I will die soon.. but I knew it would happen. I wanted revenge." Yashamaru could feel his life force weaken. _Heh. I guess I'm going to die soon.. Damn! I couldn't kill him but I guess I can destroy him…_

"I'll give you a piece of advice. If you heed my advice, you'll probably survive in this world." He said smirking when he saw Gaara cringe.

"Love only yourself, live for yourself and kill for yourself." He began. "Do not think of others for they will betray you. Let me be an example of that." He finished.

"Sakura-chan will not betray me! She is my friend!" he defended, desperate to convince Yashamaru, desperate to keep him alive.

He may have tried to kill him but he's still Yashamaru, the person who cared for him. Be it, even if he did it for revenge, Yashamaru still cared.

"Friends huh? How pathetic." He snickered.

"Y-you're my friend too!" Gaara added determined to change Yashamaru's mind. Gaara knew he was doing this for himself. He just wanted to convince _himself._ He wanted Yashamaru to be like before.

Not all your wants are granted.

Yashamaru grinned contentedly and glared at Gaara. "You.. were never my friend. It's probably the same for that girl you care so much about."

"No!" Gaara protested. "She isn't like that!"

"Where is she now?" the black op asked tauntingly. "Why has she not returned?"

Yashamaru's words stung because Gaara knew he was right. He never thought it would hurt this much though. The pain in the red-head's chest was unbearable. It was so.. painful.

_When will it stop?_

Yashamaru, believing the plan was working continued. "I used you.. If you want me to make you feel better, then I could've been your friend if you hadn't murdered my sister. I wanted to kill you. I just wanted" he paused. "No, needed to avenge my sister. And killing you seemed the most appropriate way." He was appeased.

He finally broke the boy. He was even gladder to see the look on Gaara's face. The sorrow, agony and rage... The hate shown by his eyes.

_Priceless._ Yashamaru thought at last.

Gaara had an insane look in his eyes. He couldn't portray the next happenings because they all happened in a blur.

Gaara took a fallen kunai from the ground and swiftly pierced it through Yashamaru's heart. He was killed in that quick moment.

Gaara smiled disturbingly and stood up. He took one long look at Yashamaru's lifeless body and turned the other way.

_Sakura chan won't return. She's just like Yashamaru. She is a traitor._

"Yashamaru, thank you." He whispered graciously. "I now know the truth about this forsaken world."

Looking up, he put his hand on his chest and vowed. "I will be a monster."

_**I'll help you.**_ the voice from earlier perked.

_**I am Shukkaku. I will teach you the art of destruction and the happiness it would bring once you hear their thirsty screams.**_

* * *

Wow! This was long! A total of 2180 words excluding the Author's note.

Reviews make me smile :)


	5. New Friend, Naruto!

Okay.. so it took me a really long time to finally start writing. I apologize for that but c'mon you all know school is hard! Well, hope you like this new chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

It has been about a year since Sakura left Sunagakure. The pinkette has started to miss a certain red-head dearly. She has tried to ask her mom to let her visit her friend but her mom refused to acknowledge the fact that her only friend was, Gaara. The so called monster of the village.

Sakura has had as of no friend since she got here. She was really lonely. Her parents has started to work more, concluding Sakura with no one to talk to. Sakura's birthday was supposed to be celebrated yesterday but due to her parents' work they had missed it. She celebrated the day of her birth alone with a cake and a present that her parents had left.

"_No friends to play with. No one to talk to. This is more worse than in Suna! At least I had a friend there._" She thought bitterly while kicking the ground. She was trying to play soccer without the ball and the other players. She found it very boring and decided to stop the pointless game.

" All right then! I'll go get me a friend!" she said as she walked out the door. "Bye, mom. I'll go look for friends. She announced hoping someone would notice her. But that _hope_ was short lived as soon as she remembered that no one else was home.

Walking towards the park was a normal thing for Sakura. She always went there fantasizing that someone would notice her and ask her to be their friend. She raised her hand and scanned her small, pale fingers. She smiled when she saw how the black ring gleamed in the sunlight.

Black was certainly not her color but since Gaara gave it to her, she continued to wear it. Only removing it when necessary. She didn't want to lose it, it was one of her few connections with Gaara. It was a remembrance so that when she sees him again, she'll show him how she treasured the gift he had given her.

Hesitantly, she put down her hand and waited for someone to introduce themselves.

Sadly, no one wanted to be friends with her considering they all already had someone to play with. Yes, she could ask them if they could be friends but Sakura was never one to be the first to talk. Maybe it was fate that made her go and ask Gaara but she knew it was different here. That and she has a trauma about her forehead.

_What if they make _fun_ of me? _she thought reminiscing about her cruel past. Children laughing, playing. "Can I play too?" she said smiling to hide her shyness. "Waaahh! Her forehead is huge!" a child spoke. "Hahah! Yeah, it is!" another child said while grinning. _The children laughing at her. Taunting her._

She shivered as she remembered the way the kids teased her. She has bangs to cover it now but even with them, her forehead was still noticeable. Still… laughable.

Reaching the park, she sat on her favorite bench. She sat here all the time. She wore her best smile once there hoping it would make her seem friendly. Well, she was anyways.

Since no one came, she closed her eyes and thought about what it would be like if she had lots of friends. _We could play on the slides, play tag together, and soccer! Oh, we'd play on the swings too!_ she thought about how she and Gaara would play on the swings. Gaara would push the swing, making it go higher and higher while she would scream at Gaara telling him to stop. They would laugh all the time. They were both content with having just the other to play with. They didn't need anyone else. They didn't _want_ anyone else.

_Hmm.. I wonder how Gaara is doing._ _I hope he's doing well.._

Little did she know, her friend was wreaking havoc back in town. Well.. maybe scaring is the right way to put it. The red-head has become more cruel, more dangerous.

The pink-haired girl started to get drowsy, feeling the darkness take over, her eyes slowly drooping.. Surprisingly, the only thing she thought about was the name of her old friend.

_Gaara…_

* * *

Green eyes fluttered open as she moved her hand to touch her sore neck, rubbing it to soothe its ache. She looked around to see no one left in the park. _That's strange.. It's still pretty early._ She pondered. She searched the park for any signs of people. She found none. "If you're looking for everyone else, they all left already." A loud voice spoke knowingly. "Why did they leave?" she asked the voice. She looked for the source of the voice which resulted to the swings. Sakura stood up and walked to the swings.

There, she saw a spiky, blonde haired boy wearing a white short and some baggy shorts. He looked down as he sat alone on the swing. "They probably left because they were disgusted by me." he stated deppresingly. "Why?" she questioned the young man as she walked closer to him. "Because they said I'm a monster." Sakura then sat on one of the swings looking at the boy beside her. "But you're not one, right?" she said smiling softly at the blonde.

"I don't know." And with that the pinkette couldn't hold her laughter any longer. "W-what's so funny?" The boy looked at her like she was crazy. "N-nothing. I'm Sakura by the way!" she said as she stood up and walked over to where the boy was sitting. "And you need to have fun! You're too sad! And I can't stand sad people!" She said. "Oh and hold on to the swing, you might fall down." The boy gladly obeyed. "I'm Naruto, by the way!" she giggled.

Sakura pushed Naruto hard making him surprised at the sudden contact. As the girl told him, he held on to the rope. He was being put higher and higher onto the air. _It feels great!_ He thought to himself. He smiled and started laughing. "Too fast! You're going too fast, Sakura chan!" _–chan?_ The girl thought. That was fast. _We're friends already?!_ She grinned at the thought and pushed the swings faster.

The swings were soon put to a halt as Sakura stopped pushing. Naruto slowly looked at the girl afraid she'd say something bad.

_Monster! _

_Demon!_

But when he looked back, he saw the girl giggling like there's no tomorrow. So, he decided to do what he thought was right. He laughed with her. Sakura seemed shocked at first and he noticed that that she suddenly stopped laughing.

Then she started again. He followed. It was like a continuous cycle neither of them talking just laughing and giggling. Sakura decided to stop the cycle though.. "Wow! It's been a long time since I've laughed like that!" she chirped. "Me too! That was the first time I laughed so hard, Believe it!" he beamed at his newly found friend.

"You know.. you remind me of my old friend back from my hometown." She stated eyeing him for effects then as if convinced nodded in approval. The young boy laughed at her antics. "Really?" she smiled. "Yup! He was lonely too! I was surprised at the similarities you two shared!" She said grinning at Naruto. "Hehe! Is that so?! I love ramen and I'm going to be the next Hokage! Believe it!" She showed him a smile. Then punched his arm. "Oww! What was that for?" he yelped. "Well.. when you said you love ramen and will be the next Hokage, the similarities ended and I felt the urge to punch you. Sorry!" she teased.

"Ehhh… Is that so? Tell me what that guy was like!" he demanded pulling her hand and leading her back to the bench. He then motioned for her to sit down. "Well.. he's very shy." She said as she sat down. Naruto nodded and sat down too. "And he's always alone until I came of course! It's like I was his prince and I rescued him from evil!" she said moving her hands up and clenching her fists. Then pointing it to Naruto like he was the enemy.

"You mad villain! Release my friend or I will end your life with the sword of justice!" she said standing up poising her body, getting ready to attack. Naruto realizing the game widened his eyes in surprise. Smirking when an idea popped into his head. "No! I will never surrender to an ugly hero like you!" he yelled raising his hand like Sakura who seemed to be annoyed by his choice of words.

"Then we shall fight! And I will win!" she yelled lunging at him. Naruto too shocked to move. He was even more surprised when Sakura passed by him and grabbed two sticks.

"Here." She said throwing the stick at Naruto who struggled to catch it but catched it nonetheless. "I want a fair play!" she smirked tauntingly making the blonde boy start the first move. "Hyaaaa!" Naruto screamed attacking Sakura. Sakura used her stick and blocked Naruto's attacks.

They continued playing until Sakura yelled. "Stop, you-!"

"Villain?" he cut her off. "Nope! I was going to say Stop, you weakling! but I guess that works too." she said teasingly. "What?" he said raising his stick once more. "Wait! I'm tired already! Let's go back to the bench." She said in between pants. "Okay! I win then!" he declared showing a smug smirk. "No! We'll continue next time!" she responded almost immediately not wanting to admit defeat.

They got to the bench and both sat down. "Gaara and I used to play like that before too!" she beamed. "Gaara was your friend, right?" He remembered what Sakura had said earlier. "Yup! Glad you remember." She said with a smirk. "Of course! Wait! Why are you smirking?!" he said accusingly pointing his finger at her.

"Nothing!" she answered quickly. Naruto was still curious but shrugged it off. "Hey! It's almost sunset!" she glanced at the sky. "Yeah, why?" he said looking at her_. she's very pretty._ He thought scanning her pink locks then to her pale face. "Mom's probably worried."_ If she's even home.._she thought sadly. "Oh, I see.. Well, See you tomorrow then?" he whispered. "Yeah!" she answered smiling at him.

Sakura walked back to her house. A huge smile still evident on her face, obviously because of her new- found friend. _I'm gonna make more friends!_ She thought happily as she skidded back to her humble abode.

* * *

Yay! It's done! Okay so you guys probably noticed that I changed my writing style. Well, that's because I read the previous chapters and saw that it lacked descriptions and well, there are a lot of spelling and grammar mistakes.

I will be editing the chapters in hopes of making my story decent! That also means it will take a while to make new chapters because I will be focusing on editing!

Thank you for reading and please review!


	6. His Revelation

Finally made a new chapter! Yippee! I did this one at class while my teacher was discussing something about history! I'm not really fond of History class. Hehe, so while my teacher was going on about something about war, I think? I was writing this! Hope you like it!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto!

* * *

_Monster. _A word people often called him. They had called him this since he was a child. He would always cry when they'd call him this. Why? Because he was not one. Well, that's what he used to think. That's what he would always think to comfort himself.

But he's not the same anymore. He's not that sad, pitiful crybaby he once was. He's no longer.. innocent.

If you'd like a more specific reason, then he would not cry when they'd call him a monster because... it suits him. The word monster describes him perfectly. Someone.. no, something ruthless and gruesome who can/will kill someone without hesitation. Someone who enjoys the death of a human being. Someone who laughs at the conflicted sorrow shown on a human's face. Someone without _mercy._

He likes it. He loves it. Being called that does not bother him at all. It does omit quite the opposite. He would smile at the thought of people scared of him.

Every single person in Suna knew him. All of them feared him. There were only three people who talked to him. His sensei, Temari and Kankuro. They may talk to him but he knew they were afraid of him too. It was already so obvious how they'd try not to make him mad. Always using a soft voice, never loud when talking to him and they would shudder when he looked mad.

This pleased him a lot.

_**You've become strong, Gaara.**_A strange, mysterious voice called out to him in his mind. Gaara didn't need to stop to think to know who possessed that voice.

Shukkaku.

_I'm still not strong enough._ He told him seriously.

There was a pause.

_**What do you live for?**_ Shukkaku asked him.

_I live for myself._ His voice void of any emotion. It was petrifying. His jade eyes shone with the moonlight reflecting on a hint of sadness. The color of his eyes so mesmerizing, it makes you want to find the cause of its remorse.

Shukkaku smiled as he thought of an idea to test the red-head.

_**Do you like cherry blossoms?**_ He asked with plain curiosity.

_No. They remind me of a traitor._ He bluntly stated. Anger clearly shown on his face. It disappeared quickly though.

At the mention of cherry blossoms, Gaara couldn't help but remember someone who had broken a promise.

It has been years and she has yet to return. Sadness and pain took over him for a moment as he remembered a certain ribbon. He quickly pushed the thought away knowing Shukkaku would notice the sudden emotion.

Shukkaku however, noticed the boy's feelings and let out a chuckle.

_What's so funny?_ He hissed.

_**You've changed.**_ Shukkaku answered. Gaara could feel the smirk planted on Shukkaku's face.

Gaara then decided to go around the village and look at the people still living in it.

* * *

The people cowered in fear. Most of them quickly ran back to their homes. Some acted brave and stayed but Gaara knew they were scared out of their wits.

_Pathetic_. He thought over and over like a broken record.

"Quick, inside!" he heard a woman whisper to her child. He turned to look at the woman. She had chestnut, brown hair and light, black pupils that were directly looking at him. The woman swiftly lowered her head to avoid angering the boy.

He continued to stare at the woman. He inwardly smiled contentedly when he saw her face twist in fear and worry. The woman soon muttered an apology and scrambled back to her house. Gaara decided to kill the woman and her child later.

_**No.**_ Shukkaku commandedin his head. _**You will not waste your time. we will kill some missing-nins later. Save your strength for that.**_ He stated, effectively shutting off Gaara.

Gaara grunted and proceeded on his way. _Where?_ He asked dryly.

_**Forest.**_ Shukkaku replied already imagining the things he'd do to torture the ninjas.

* * *

The missing-nins were weak. They give up way too easily. It annoyed Gaara how they could just leave their pride like that. Begging for mercy. That's just stupid.

Raising his arm, he slowly closed his hands. Sand started coming out from his gourd and made their way to the ex-nins. The sand wrapped itself around the ninjas who were by now, screaming because of pain. The sand started becoming tighter like Gaara's hand. The sand constricted slowly and painfully on the ninjas. Gaara smirked. He then closed his hand completely. "Sand Coffin!" his voice rough and filled with excitement. Blood came out from the sand and splattered on the ground.

Gaara grinned wickedly and stared at the sight in front of him. His sand had come back to his gourd leaving only the mutated body parts of the ninjas. Blood could be seen everywhere in that area. Gaara, pleased with himself and the damage he had made turned around and made his way back to the village. Blood could still be seen with him and the people who saw him looked horrified.

Gaara ignored them though and walked back into his house. He sat on an empty chair. He soon started going through his memories, remembering the pleads and screams of the ninjas. Their bodies all separated and mutilated.

_And so are their pride. But I don't think they'd know.. wherever they are._ He thought gleefully.

_Ahh! The wonders of blood!_ He thought again feeling his body replenished and well from the blood. He felt so good. So content. His body felt better, he felt stronger...

_I want more…_

* * *

Okay! This was it! I know it's short but I couldn't help it! Sorry if this was short compared to the rest. I just thought I should end it here, you know? I'll try to make it longer next chapter! Anyways, a lot of you followed but not much reviewed. How will I know what you think of my story if you don't review?


	7. Hide and Seek

Thank you to those who reviewed. Your reviews made me smile. Invisible pie for you guys!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

* * *

8 years old Sakura Haruno was playing tag with her two best friends.

"You can't catch me, Sasuke kun!" she called out to a boy with spiky, raven colored hair. She waved her hands while still running to taunt he said boy, only to receive a smirk plastered on his face.

"Hn." He replied casually.

Sakura could only grin at her best friend's choice of words.

She turned her head at the back to see, other than Sasuke, a blonde. "Geez, Naruto! Hurry up or Sasuke kun will catch us!" she yelled to the boy while laughing.

Naruto quickened his pace but failed to catch up with the pink-haired athletic. "Y-you're too fast, Sakura chan!" he complained rather loudly, already panting.

Sakura grinned proudly and ran faster, skillfully avoiding Sasuke. As she neared a corner, Sasuke suddenly appeared from the corner she was getting at.

"What?" she gasped in surprise and turned to run away. She was too late however because Sasuke had already reached for her. Had already touched her shoulder. Had already stated the words "You're it."

Sakura, disappointed crossed her arms together. Her disappointment soon turned to confusion as she thought about the way he 'magically' appeared from the corner she was supposed to be headed. Sighing in defeat she asked him. "How'd you get here?! Y-you were over there just now!" she interrogated, pointing far away from which she saw him last.

"Well, I ran the other way resulting in us meeting each other in this corner. It's a square park so naturally, you'd meet if you went the opposite directions." He pointed out looking very satisfied.

"Hmph!" she spun around and faced the opposite of Sasuke's direction with a pout.

"Are you mad?" he inquired. "No!" she answered almost reflexively.

Suddenly, a loud yelp was heard from far away. They both faced that direction and started sprinting. They both knew it was Naruto. After all, who else could have such a loud, obnoxious voice that could still be heard a few kilometers away?

They searched the park which was by the way, larger than it should be. "Naruto!" Sakura yelled, searching for any signs of the said boy. Sasuke only turned his head thrice before he spotted yellow. He didn't look too happy to see the yellow though.

"Hn. Dobe tripped and fell down." He stated knowingly. A bored look on his face. "What?" Sakura asked confusingly. Sasuke pointed at Naruto who was struggling to get up.

"Thank God!" she mused. Running towards the boy, she bent down and lengthened her arm out to help Naruto. He graciously took it and grinned.

"Ehehehe!"

"You know, I was really worried about you!" she confessed. Her eyes shone with relief and concern. Naruto wasn't surprised though. Sakura was, to him, the most caring person he's ever met. He also couldn't help but grin at the thought of Sakura worried about him.

"I'm sorry, Sakura chan!" The said girl smiled in response and scanned Naruto for any injuries present. She inwardly sighed in relief when she saw none. "I think we had enough play for today." She sadly stated running her fingers through her hair.

"Hn." Answered Sasuke. Sakura slightly giggled. "I've always wondered if that's actually a word, Sasuke kun." She teased.

"…"

She giggled a little louder this time. _Sasuke kun's funny!_

She then gasped when she looked at the once blue sky that has now turned scarlet red. "I have to go now!" she told Sasuke and Naruto. They both nodded and silence took over them.

Surprisingly, Sasuke was the one who broke the ice. "I'll take you home." He commanded, a stern look on his face. Naruto pouted at this. "I'll come too!" Sakura smiled sweetly. "Thanks!" she told the two.

"Well, let's go!" shouted an excited Naruto. Sakura grinned and followed her two best friends.

When they noticed Sakura slowing down, both stopped and made space for the girl between the two of them. She stepped forward and was now between the two young men. She reached for a hand from both.

Holding Sasuke's and Naruto's hands, she gleefully skipped along the path and hummed until she finally got home.

* * *

Lying on her bed was one of the most relaxing things for Sakura. She slowly closed her eyes and thought about her meeting with Sasuke.

* * *

_Sakura was playing hide and seek with Naruto. She was 'it' so she had to look for Naruto._

_While searching frantically for him, her feet led her to the meadows. There, she saw a boy with dark, black hair sitting behind a somewhat large oak tree. Honestly, the boy looked beautiful in sweet little Sakura's eyes. His spiky, black hair falling down slightly while he slept. His face formed in a very cute way._

_Sakura just knew that when this boy grew older, his face would mature and he'd be surrounded by plenty of girls._

_She stepped forward, wanting to look at the boy closer. The said boy seemed to sense her. His body jolted and he quickly opened his eyes._

_His eyes. Oh, his eyes! They looked so pretty. It was painted an elegant onyx. It was not, however, the source of their beauty. It was not the color that drew her in, it was the story shown by his eyes._

_The sadness, joy, surprise, all told uniquely by his dark eyes._

_Amazing._

_Beautiful._

_And with these thoughts in her mind, Sakura immediately had a fluttery feeling. This boy would become her friend. He had to be.  
_

_"Hi! My name is Sakura!" she smiled nervously. "Leave me be." He grunted. "I want to be alone." He added. "But you look like you're in pain!" she complained._

_The boy seemed shocked; no he was at a loss for words. He stood up quickly and regained his composure. He looked at her. "How?"_

_"You're eyes." She immediately answered. "They are the foundation of your soul. The foundation of everyone's soul. I can see and somewhat feel your emotions through them."_

_"They look sad, hurt, lonely... Like you want someone to see you, to notice you.. to appreciate you." she added. _

_She couldn't help but think that he was like her from before. She remembered how it felt. And like what Gaara and Naruto had done, she wanted to save someone. Save this **boy**._

_It took him another moment to process what she said which was very unusual for him. Finally, he answered._

_"Sasuke."_

_"Huh?" she asked, confused. "My name is Sasuke." He replied, probably annoyed._

_She smiled._

_His eyes widened. A true smile. She smiles honestly… like.. my mother. He thought surprised._

_"Nice to meet you, Sasuke kun! Let's be friends from now on!" she stretched her right hand asking for a shake._

_Sasuke gladly (though he'd never admit it) obliged. He took her hand and shook it. He also smiled. "Now. We're officially friends!" she happily beamed at the young boy._

She opened her apple, green eyes and smirked. _And that's how me and Sasuke met.__Oh! And how Naruto stayed in his hiding place A.K.A. the dumpsters. For a whole day!_

Who knew our sweet, little Sakura could be so evil?

* * *

This chapter emphasized her friendship with Sasuke and Naruto! Sorry if Gaara's not here. I wanted to focus mainly on her relationships at Konoha.

Don't worry! He'll probably be in the next chapter! (I said 'probably'!)

Please review! Your reviews inspire me!


	8. Childhood Memories (Extra)

Hello people!

I have an announcement to make. There's a poll in my profile and I'm hoping you guys could vote. I can't really make more chapters if the pairings are undecided.

The reason why I put this poll is because I'm not really certain of the airings anymore. I hope you guys help me!

Note: Still GaaSaku! That is something I will not change. I just need to know if you guys want a love triangle or something.

Leaving all this aside, I am well aware that Author's note are not allowed so I wrote a mini-side story about Sakura's and Gaara's playtime from when Sakura was still in Suna.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

Enjoy!~

* * *

_Sakura chan's really a beauty.._ a certain red-head thought as he looked to the girl sitting next to him.

Sakura, who noticed the attention looked at Gaara raising her eyebrows in a peculiar way. Gaara smiled in response and shook his head, silently telling her there was nothing wrong.

Sakura nodded visibly and faced her front again.

After a few minutes of silence, she turned to face Gaara and squeezed his cheeks.

Gaara's eyes widened in shock and he blushed. Sakura then withdrew he small hands from Gaara's now burnt cheek and put them in her lap.

An awkward silence engulfed the two children. Sakura looked like she was pondering about something important while Gaara was still paralyzed from the sudden contact, his cheeks even now,is still flaming.

Gathering courage, Gaara looked at the pinkette again and showed her a questioning look. Sakura grinned widely as if she waiting for him to ask her.

"I knew it." She answered. "What?" he asked.

Sakura smiled mischievously. "They are so soft!" she mused. "And chubby!" she added, nodding her head in approval.

Gaara let her weird comment sink through him, blushing when he realized what she meant. "T-they aren't!" he protested earning a few giggles from the said girl.

"They so are! I even pinched them!" she defended playfully. Gaara blushed harder and looked away from the girl, not wanting her to see his red face.

Sakura however, had a different plan in her mind. She stood up and ran towards where Gaara's face was located at.

She grinned when she saw his reaction. "Now, they are red too!" she perked loudly. "S-stop teasing me!" he commanded in a very cute way.

Sakura decided to disobey this order and continued to tease him. "I can't help it!" she whined. "You're too gullible,Gaara kun!"

The said boy pouted in a taunting way. "You're so cute,Gaara kun!" Sakura commented, eyeing Gaara for any signs of protest.

She smiled in satisfaction when she heard none. "So..you know you're cute?" she asked.

Gaara shooked his head repeatedly and for the first time yelled in not so polite way. "I am not cute! Girls are cute, not boys!"

Sakura was just about to speak when Gaara cut her off. "In fact, I think you're the cute one,Sakura chan!"

Now, it was her time to blush and turn away.

Gaara noticed this and smirked. "What's wrong,Sakura chan?" he taunted.

"Foul." She answered. Gaara tilted his head in confusion. "That was a sudden attack. I'm supposed to do the teasing." She added shyly.

"That's unfair!" Gaara protested playfully.

"It's not! I made the game so I make the rules!" she defended.

"We are playing a game?" he asked playfully.

"…"

Sakura laughed inwardly at her friend's stupidity. "No,we're not." She answered sarcastically.

"Oh..So you were just teasing me?" She inwardly sweatdropped but when she saw the smirk plastered on Gaara's face, she knew he was acting.

And boy was he a great actor.

"Now, I know you're pretending! Stop that!" she yelled.

Gaara shook his head, mutely saying he doesn't understand. "I'm not lying!"

Sakura never knew boys were such good liars. Much more, Gaara kun to be a liar. He was Gaara! Gaara never lied. The Gaara she saw when they first met was so different from this. Gaara was very innocent and pure. All children were.

Sakura had to admit she was very kind too. She also had a very hard time lying because something would always tell her to stop. It hurt her heart when she said something false so she didn't do that.

Snapping out of her thoughts, she looked at Gaara once more. "Fine, let's stop this. It's not fun anymore!" she complained.

Gaara smirked in victory and walked towards the girl. "I win." He announced.

"No, you didn't!" she yelled back.

"I did!"

"You didn't!"

"I did!"

"No, you didn't!"

The two of them continued bickering about how Gaara won and how he didn't until sunset.

That's a new record.

Unbeknownst to them, a certain kid was watching from afar.

"Ehehe, these two are funny!" the kid murmured as he watched the two soon go their separate ways.

The kid giggled again. "Those two are so in love!" he commented. "And dense." he shook his head in disappointment.

"They're dense alright." he agreed to himself when he remembered how the two would blush when they received a compliment from the other.

The kid sighed. "Children."

* * *

Okay, I know! Not the best sidestory but please bear with it!

This is just a sidestory so I won't break the guidelines. This is not connected to the story. Just an extra. The kid from the last part is.. whoever you want him/her to be.

Please review!~


	9. Dreams and Her Existence

Hello to my dear readers!

I am so happy! I received a lot of reviews last chapter. That chapter was just an extra so I was so surprised when I saw the reviews!

Thank you very much for the reviews!

Free cookies for everyone who reads this story and HUGE pies for:

_GamerGirl49_

_sasusakuxnaruhina_

_MiyatheEarthninja_

_miikodesu_

_Sakura no Polen_

_darkstar2010_

I wanted to personally thank you guys.

Now, let's start with the story:

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

* * *

"Gaara kun!" she shrieked with excitement, seeing a boy with blood-red hair turn towards her. He looked at her, disappointment clouding his vision.

"Sakura chan…" he murmured softly. The sound of his voice sent shivers down her spine. This bewildered her; Why would she react like that to his voice? Didn't she want to see Gaara? So why was she feeling like this?

"Sakura chan.." he murmured her name again.

_Ahh.._ she figured. _He's different. He's not Gaara kun… _

_Is he?_

"Why?" he asked her. She sent him a puzzled look.

Understanding the look she gave him, he answered. "You promised."

"Why didn't you come back?" he asked her, this time with a sob.

Her heart shattered into pieces when she heard his question, his sob, his plead.

"I'm sorry." She responded.

"They wouldn't let me. My parents wouldn't let me come back." She added mournfully.

He seemed to have not heard her for he gave her the same question. She'd reply with the same answer too.

"You said you'd come back." He choked out.

"I'm so sorry, Gaara kun."

He looked at her, tears in his eyes that refused to fall. It was like he didn't want her to see him crying.

The tears welled up in her own eyes and started to slide down on her cheeks. Wiping them, she repeated. "I'm sorry."

She echoed those words over and over, her tears never-ceasing yet pouring ever so lightly like the rain.

Gaara would not answer her, he never did. It was as if he couldn't hear anything she said. He could see her but he couldn't understand her.

It was agonizingly painful for Sakura. Gaara,crying because of her. Because _she _broke their promise. Because _she_ made him wait for nothing. Because _she _never came back.

It was her fault. He is crying because of a promise she failed to fulfill.

She could feel his pain. Gaara's pain. She didn't know how and why but she could.

She wanted it to stop. It was too much, the extra burden of his agony. Hers was enough.

And so she sobbed, beyond control.

A single sentence brought her back from the edge of hysteria. Gaara's low,rough voice- broken and childlike- declared. "I love you."

* * *

She awoke from her nightmare, sweating and panting. She sat up and checked at her reality again.

_Just a dream.._ she consoled herself but she was not convinced. What if Gaara _is_ crying now? Tears sprang at her eyes as she thought about the possibilities.

She recalled her nightmare and wondered about the last words she heard before waking up.

"_I love you."_

_Could this be true? _She asked herself but unsurprisingly her logic said no. That it was just a dream but no matter what she says to herself, she felt a nagging feeling at the pit of her stomach. She just couldn't point out what it meant.

Figuring her thoughts were pointless, she pushed them away.

After she got ready, she walked towards the door and cheerfully announced she was going.

As always, No one heard her.

Sakura wished her parents would spend time with her but she knew that was impossible.

They were working to pay for her needs and wanting them to stay because of her loneliness was just selfish. Besides, They have more important things to do.

She sighed deeply._  
_

Important. _She _was not important.

She then remembered her mother's words. _"This is exactly why I wanted a son."_

At that thought, she felt a bolt of anxiety strike through her.

A simultaneous train of thoughts seems to have invaded her brain for she kept on asking her brain for answers.

_If my mother doesn't want me, who would? _

And then another:

_Perhaps her _parents_ kept her _only _because of her kekkei genkai._

But then she recalled about her earlier nightmare and told herself how narrow-minded she was.

How could she be thinking of herself, when right now, her first friend could still be waiting for her?

Gaara might be lonely and sad without her.

But, maybe he already has new friends.

Somehow,that didn't feel right for her. She didn't like it.

She decided to forget these things for now and go meet her teammates.

She was probably already late.

_Or maybe not._ She agreed to herself when she remembered her sensei and his shortcomings.

* * *

"Sakura chan!" a boisterous voice called out to her. She looked up in response and saw Naruto.

"Hey, Naruto." She greeted weakly.

Both Sasuke and Naruto noticed the faint voice of the girl. Sakura was a kind, gentle girl and she would speak quietly sometimes but never this soft.

Let's face it, Sakura was never the silent type. She was shy but not silent.

"Are you sick?" Naruto asked worriedly.

"I'm fine." she answered, faking a smile.

Her friends of course noticed this and frowned. Well, Sasuke frowned, Naruto gave her an are-you-okay look.

She nodded faintly in response.

Still not convinced, Sasuke took her hand and led her to a bench, Naruto following them worriedly.

"Speak." He ordered.

She knew they would ask her this and she hesitated on responding.

_They _are_ my bestfriends._ She told herself.

"Neh, Sasuke,Naruto." She began. "Do you think it'd be better if I didn't exist?"

No one answered at first.

Sasuke was shockingly the first one to talk. "Is this what it's all about?" he sighed.

She was about to speak when Naruto cut her off.

"Sakura, If you didn't exist, I'd still be sitting alone on that swing." Naruto had not used the honorific 'chan.' She noted.

"Teme here would still be brooding over Itachi." He added teasingly.

He then looked at Sasuke and shouted. "No offense!" Sakura grinned and nodded her head.

The raven haired teen glared at Naruto, an ominous aura radiating from his body.

Naruto inwardly peed his pants, gulped, then started running.

Sasuke smirked and started sprinting towards Naruto who by now was muttering low curses. When he noticed Sasuke gaining speed, he screamed an apology and ran faster.

They both stopped, however, when they heard familiar giggles coming from their pink haired friend.

Sakura stared at her friends, a few tears in her eyes, then she ran towards them. She hung her arms around their necks and tightened her grip thus closing the space between them.

"Thank you." She whispered sweetly as she let go of them.

"Glad you're feeling better." Naruto cheered.

"Hn. Welcome."

Two pairs of shocked faces looked to the person who had just spoken.

"D-did you just say something and not ignore us or say Hn?" she stuttered.

Naruto remained silent and stared at the ground. Then, as if, he reflected on something, grinned like there's not tomorrow. "It's a miracle!" he exclaimed.

Sasuke once again glared at the blonde.

If looks could kill, Naruto, would've been long dead.

"Awww… Why am I not part of this team moment?" A voice asked. They all turned to Kakashi and sweatdropped.

"Hn." Sasuke grunted uninterestedly and diverted his deadly stare back to Naruto.

"Are you guys ignoring me?" the silver-haired man inquired.

"Yes." They all answered simultaneously before erupting into a cheer of laughters.

Sasuke was smiling faintly, while the rest were laughing like there's no tomorrow.

Moments like this should always be treasured.

Because you never know when it will all end.

After the team had left and done their mission, Sakura was left to reflect for herself once again.

_I still wonder about my dream. _She told herself.

She felt conflicted about it. Part of her was happy Gaara had not forgotten her, she was glad he was suffering because she had not come back. She felt all fluttery when she remembered his last words in her dream again. _"I love you."_

She felt so greedy and self-centered because of this.

* * *

Finished! Sorry guys but I _won't_ be able to update until I get a sufficient amount of votes since I can no longer continue without the pairings.

That's not the only reason why I can't update sooner.

Idiotic as it is, I have no idea what to do for the next chapter. I know a writer should have it all planned etc. but I have what you guys call writer's block.

This is a formula I found on someone's story. I forgot who but I think it's true.

Review=inspiration=faster updates

Do you guys agree?


	10. Reunited

Hello, my lovely readers! *giggles*

I finally made a new chapter! It's because I got hooked on the song "For you by Azu" It's also one of the ending songs for Naruto where Sakura, much to my delight, was one of the main characters in the song! (if you watched it, you'll know)

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

* * *

She woke up, a few tears on her eyes. She dreamt of him again. She didn't know how or why she would dream of him, she just did. Perhaps it's because she felt guilty for breaking a promise. Or because she wanted to see him again. Either way, it had something to do with their promise. Maybe it's a sign that she'll see him soon.

But what if Gaara doesn't even remember their promise? Maybe, he's already moved on with new friends and teammates. Maybe he's already happy.

At the thought, she felt her heart constrict. She didn't want him to be happy. She didn't want him to laugh with others, to smile at other people, to make new promises with _new_ friends.

How could she be this selfish? She should be glad Gaara's not sad but she's not. _I won't be selfish. I'm not selfish._ she repeated in her head. She hated this part of her.

This narrow-minded, self-centered person.

She sighed deeply and stood up. She performed few exercises and got ready. After she was done, she headed out to meet her teammates again. Wait. She forgot the ring. Immediately, she went back to her house. She wouldn't dare to go anywhere without it. What if she suddenly sees him again and she's not wearing the ring. She wouldn't take that chance.

After she got her ring, she sighed in relief and set off to meet her friends.

She was now 12-years-old. Time was too fast. Too quick for her. Truthfully, she didn't like that it went too fast. She would run out of chances to meet Gaara kun again. She wished it would slow down to her pace, to... maybe take a break but it wouldn't, no matter how hard she hoped.

It couldn't anyway.

"Sakura chan!" she heard Naruto call her. She snapped out of her thoughts and looked at the blonde standing a few meters from her. She smiled in response and skipped her way towards them, waving her hands in greeting. "Good morning, Naruto."

"Morning, Sakura chan!" he replied enthusiastically. "Good morning, Sasuke kun!" she said to the black-haired boy. "Hn." He grunted.

"Hmmm.." Naruto pondered out loud. Sasuke and Sakura looked at the blonde with questioning looks. "Sakura chan," he started. "Yes?" she asked him.

He grinned playfully. "How come you call Sasuke, Sasuke kun, yet you just call me Naruto." He inquired, emphasizing the -kun. Sakura blushed at this comment. "What are you implying, Naruto?"

_Gotcha._ Thought the blonde. "Nothing," he answered. "Just that it seems strange you say his name with honorifics." he continued.

She blushed harder and shook her head. "There's nothing strange about that!" she protested. "I don't think so!" Naruto defended. "Sasuke kun is Sasuke kun!" she told him angrily. "Oh, and what does that mean?" Naruto asked tauntingly..knowingly.

She paused for a moment thinking of something.. _anything_ to change the topic, then grinning mischievously when a plan formed itself in her head.

Calmly, she answered."It's because I don't want Hinata to misunderstand!" she explained. That's when she saw it. She _saw_ it.

Naruto's body stiffened visibly and he lowered his head at her comment, as if trying to hide something on his face. Oh, she just knew it. _Payback time. _she whispered to herself gloriously.

"I also don't want to call you by the name Hinata calls you. I always had this thought, that you reserved that nickname for her and her only. Wouldn't you hate me if I call you the way she does? Wouldn't it annoy you?"

"I don't want you to hate me, Naruto!" she added teasingly.

Naruto could only nod his head slightly. He was too frozen to talk back. Sakura scarred his brain with dozens of thoughts. His brain refused to think of anything but the girl Sakura mentioned. The way she said his name. How she was so kind and thoughtful.

He mentally made a note to himself not to tease Sakura for she will find a way,no matter how hard, to counter a joke and turn the tables around.

Sasuke smirked at Sakura's comment. _Big mistake, Dobe. _At times like this, he couldn't help but feel proud of her. She was always so smart and observant when it comes to these things. He had to admit that what she said was pretty harsh. It probably struck the dobe hard with humiliation and realizations.

The girl herself was smirking victoriously, her arms crossed like the winner she was. _That is what you get for messing with me!_ she yelled happily in her head.

Kakashi arrived a few moments later, noticing the atmosphere around them. "Did I miss anything?" he asked. Naruto answered first to cut off their explanation. "Y-you're late, Kakashi sensei!" he stuttered, his face still red.

"I did miss something didn't, I?" he questioned, noting that Naruto was blushing _and_ stuttering. "You missed seeing Naru-"

"Nothing!" Naruto cut the pinkette off. "You missed nothing! We were just playing tag!" Kakashi raised an eyebrow, not believing Naruto.

"If you say so," he answered so he could stop Naruto talk nonsense. "I have an announcement to say." Kakashi told them, his face suddenly became serious. They noticed this and nodded, silently telling him to continue.

"I've nominated you guys for the Chuunin Selection Exam." He stated. Naruto didn't believe him and started to protest. "You think that makes up for-!"

Kakashi however, cut him off before he could finish. "Here are your applications." He handed them three papers. They looked at it intently.

"Kakashi sensei, I love you!" Naruto yelled whilst hugging Kakashi. "Hey stop, let go of me!" Kakashi said while trying to break free of Naruto. "Although, this is just a nomination, whether to take the exam is up to you." He added before disappearing.

_Chuunin Exam, huh?_ the pink-haired girl thought. Truthfully, she didn't want to participate. She was weak. She could never catch up to Sasuke and Naruto. They were strong and courageous. But she wasn't.

* * *

They were heading back to their homes. Since Sakura and Naruto's home are close, they walked back together. While walking, Sakura turned to face Naruto, only to see something behind him.

"What is that?" she asked Naruto as she pointed to the thing behind him. Naruto spun around and looked at the object too. "A rock?" he thought out loud.

The rock then poofed and turned into three children. _What the? _Sakura thought inwardly. "My name is Konohamaru! This is Moegi and Udon!" the child in the middle greeted excitedly.

"Oh, You are the son of the Hokage,right?" Sakura asked, looking at Konohamaru. "Yes! It seems that I'm quite famous here." He boasted arrogantly. "Yeah, right!" Naruto protested loudly.

Konohamaru stuck out his tongue and ran, the others following him. "Get back here,Konohamaru!" Naruto called out. The said boy glanced at Naruto and didn't notice the people in front of him causing them to bump into each other.

"Ouch!" the man said. "Konohamaru!" Naruto shouted but it reached deaf ears. Everyone was focused on the scene in front of them. The man grabbed Konohamaru's neck and lifted him off the air. The poor boy could only look up with fear at the man in front.

He looked scary, that was for sure. He gave off a dark aura. "I'm not part of this." The woman at his side stated, shaking her head in disapproval. "You are gonna pay.." The man said grudgingly.

"Hey! Let go of Konohamaru!" Naruto yelled again. The man tightened his grip on Konohamaru which earned a strangled sound from the boy.

Out of nowhere, a rock came and hit the man on his head. Konohamaru was released and he ran far from those people and to where Naruto was. The man cursed and looked towards the tree.

_Sasuke kun!_ She felt relieved when she saw Sasuke. Sasuke could beat these guys together with Naruto. She just knew they could.

Just when the tattooed man was about to fight, a gruff voice came from the tree near Sasuke. "Enough, Kankuro. If you continue, I will kill you."

They all looked at the man. He had blood red hair with jade eyes. He was standing upside-down on the tree next to Sasuke's. There was a murderous aura around him.

_Wait- _

_Red hair? It can't be. _

_Jade, slightly green eyes? Impossible. _

She gazed at the red-haired man once again, still in doubt, but when she caught his eyes and stared, (_They are the foundation of our soul)_ she knew.

Gaara.

The boy from her past, from her dreams. Someone whom she thought she'd never see again.

* * *

Alright, I actually planned a lot more for this chapter but then, I saw its total of words and there were already a lot so I decided to stop here. I guess I'm not going completely canon like they met the Suna ninjas after Kakashi announced the Chuunin Exam so Temari won't be saying they're clueless. *grins*

Thanks to: _cherry11111, magen chavarria(Guest), GamerGirl49, miikodesu, Kayve1212 and leafstone._ I'm going to start thanking everyone for the review by PM'ing now!

SasuSakuGaa won the poll so I'm going with that love triangle.

The next chapter will come early. I already know what I'm going to write. Unless by some miracle, I get bored._(ifyoudon'treview)_

Jk! I'll update as soon as I can, so please review!


	11. Ressurection

Hello, my dear readers! I am very thankful for the reviews! I just love them!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

* * *

"G-gaara-kun?" she murmured softly. The man who harmed Konohamaru looked at the red-head with fear. "I-I'm sorry,Gaara. It's just that-"

"Shut up, Kankuro." Gaara cut him off before he could finish. Sakura stared at the man in disbelief. _Is this really Gaara-kun?_

He looks different. His hair was now a shade darker than before. His lips that were once always formed in a smile were frowning. His eyebrows furrowed, his arms crossed together and his posture elegant and composed.

His eyes… his eyes experienced the most change. His eyes –once reminded her of her own, with the same jade color –has hardened. They were now cold and unreadable.

Sakura hated what she was seeing. She hated how his eyes looked, perhaps even feared them. His eyes looked too ready to kill. It was too much. How could Gaara kill someone? The sudden thought made her heart squeeze painfully.

_He's not supposed to be like this._ She thought dreadfully. The Gaara she knew didn't like to see anyone hurt, be it human or animals. That was one of the reasons why she was great friends with him.

She remembered how he saved a little chick from falling of her nest, remembered the look in his eyes as the mother bird flew back to the nest to feed her chick. Remembered the joy and peace in them.

She didn't even notice that she was staring at him until he growled in anger. She snapped out of her reverie and looked away, only for a moment though, for she found herself observing him yet again.

Gaara noticed her new stare so he glared at her once again; she flinched in response this time, not expecting him to do that.

She wanted to talk to him, wanted to show him her ring. The ring she has kept and treasured all this time. She wanted to introduce him to her friends. She often told them stories about Gaara. She also wanted to tell him how she missed him and Yashamaru. But most of all, she wanted to apologize, for breaking her promise.

Yes they were kids, but to her, that promise was special. And she was pretty sure he felt that way too.

However, she couldn't move. She was completely frozen on her spot, all of them were. She assumed the reason why she was like this was because of the shock. After all, they've been apart for years and he's changed considerably...

…Or maybe it was the way he looked at her.

That's right_._ He looked at her like she was his enemy. She wasn't though, she'd never be his enemy. Ever.

"Let's go." He ordered to the two of his teammates. They followed him quietly. _No! He's leaving!_ She thought.

Gathering all her inner courage, she spoke softly. "Wait!" They paused and turned to look at the girl. Even Sakura's own teammates were surprised at her request. "What do you want?" the blonde girl asked, annoyed.

She willed herself to speak again. But this time, she really couldn't. She searched her brain for something to say and she found a lot of results.

_What happened? Are you okay? How are you? The ring, I kept it all these times. I'm sorry I broke our promise. Please forgive me. My parents wouldn't allow me to go._

_Please don't be mad at me. _

_Please.._

_Don't hate me._

Silence engulfed the two groups. The blonde clicked her tongue and muttered something incoherent. Then, they all turned to leave.

"Who are you?" Sasuke asked the red-head. The said boy stopped and glanced at Sasuke. "Gaara of the Desert." He answered proudly. "And you?"

"Uchiha Sasuke." Sasuke replied back. Sakura was then forced to watch them leave until they disappeared from her sight completely.

_Gaara-kun.._

"Sakura-chan," Naruto started. The said girl looked at him and gave him a questioning look. "Is he the one you said you met when you went to Suna?"she smiled slightly before nodding.

"He's different from what you said," he turned to look at the raven-haired man. "right, Sasuke?" Naruto reconfirmed. "Hn." he replied before looking at Sakura.

"Are you okay?" He was geniunely concerned for her. He knew she was the one most confused. The stories she would tell them about him were always filled with great happiness, minus their teary farewell of course. He remembered the way she would brighten up whenever they'd ask her to tell them about Gaara.

And the longing look she'd have when she spoke of him.

"Yeah... I'll be going ahead." She stated before walking faster than them. Naruto was about to reach for her when Sasuke stopped him. "Leave her be."

Numerous thoughts ran through her head. Gaara didn't seem to remember her. She swore she saw his glare and that it was aimed at her. Perhaps, he was mad at her. She did leave him by himself.

Maybe he even hated her. She sighed deeply and shook her head. She was overreacting. Gaara did not hate her, he wouldn't.

She stopped in her tracks and looked at the sky.

Would he?

She shook her head again to clear her thoughts before running back home. She slammed the door open and froze when she saw her parents in the dining table.

Both of them. Together. Smiling as they saw her enter.

"Sakura, sit down." Her father, Aoi stated. She obliged and sat down on a seat in front of them. Surprised would be an understatement. She was beyond words. They had stopped eating dinner together since they got back from Suna.

When she was a child, she asked her parents why they couldn't eat together. They told her they were too busy with work to come home for dinner. Since then, she stopped waiting for them to come home early. But here they were now, sitting comfortably on tatami mats as if it was a normal thing to do.

"How have you been, Sakura?" her father asked. She looked at him, shocked by his question. _Perhaps, they want our family to be happy again? _she thought unconvincingly. "Sakura," her mother's voice pulled her back to reality. She'd forgotten the way her mother said her name, so hearing her say it gave her an inner burst of joy.

She smiled lightly. _Maybe, maybe we can work this out._ "I've been doing great, otou-san. My teammates and I are really close now. We go on missions all the time. Although, they're always about catching missing pets or carrying things. Nothing exciting but I prefer it this way. I'm not really the type-"

"Sakura," her mother cut her off. "We understand you're happy with your friends so let's move on to a more interesting topic, shall we?"

She looked at her curiously before nodding. _What did she want then?_

"Your kekkei genkai, We want to know more about it." Sakura grimly smiled. _I should've known._ She thought darkly. Of course they wanted to know about her kekkei genkai. It was the only thing they cared about since she told them.

_I should've never told them about my power. Then maybe, we'd still be happy together._ She told herself. "Well?" Akane asked impatiently.

Sakura cleared her throat and began. "As you guys already know, I can revive dead people." She started. Her parents smiled proudly and nodded, silently telling her to continue. "However, I can only bring them back if they'd been dead for less than ten minutes."

"I also think that whenever I revive someone, my own life span decreases-" Her father had cut her off. "How are you sure your life span decreases?" he asks, interested.

"I literally feel and my life force leaving my body and seeping into that person. I can tell you what it looks like but I can't really see clearly. My vision goes hazy and I get all dizzy."

"When I realized that I'll probably die earlier than I'm supposed to, I stopped using my kekkei genkai." She answered him trutfully. She couldn't die yet, there were so many more things she wanted to do. "Well, it's not like I used it often anyway, I didn't like the idea of bringing someone back from the dead. It always seemed wrong to me."

Both her parents looked at themselves then at her. "Who did you revive?" Sakura shook her head immediately and glared. Clearly, she didn't want to tell them who. "Sakura," her mother's strict voice made her flinch.

"The two of you." Her parents gave her a questioning look. "I used my kekkei genkai on you two." They looked at her, speechless.

Her father regained speech first. "I don't remember-"

"You're not supposed to. The victim forgets the memory of his death after the resurrection." She cut him off. She paused. "It's better that way too."

"I think we've had enough." Her mother stood up. "Your kekkei genkai is amazing, daughter but I do hope you stop lying." Sakura didn't protest, knowing they wouldn't listen.

She then observed silently as they both went back to their room.

* * *

So, what do you guys think? Next chapter will be on Gaara's POV, I think. I'm excited to write about his reactions to seeing Sakura..

So, Sakura's power is revealed! Hohoho, has anyone guessed who she'll use her powers for because it's pretty obvious she'll use it in the future. *sigh* I talk too much..

Anyone noticed I changed the summary? Oh and I changed my pen name too! XHeartsGrowX

I'm actually a fan of this group. I'm pretty sure Hearts Grow is the one who sang the song "Yura Yura."

Hmm.. please review!


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